The invention relates to a cleaning apparatus for an endoscope, and more particularly, to such cleaning apparatus including a cleaning vessel in which an endoscope which has been used is deposited and to which a cleaning water, a liquid detergent, a liquid disinfectant or the like is supplied to clean and disinfect the endoscope.
A cleaning apparatus of the kind described is available on the market, and usually comprises a mechanism for feeding a cleaning liquid such as cleaning water or liquid detergent to a cleaning vessel in which a used endoscope is deposited, and a liquid disinfectant circulating mechanism which feeds a liquid disinfectant to the cleaning vessel and circulates it between the vessel and a tank of liquid disinfectant after the cleaning liquid has been discharged from the cleaning vessel.
In the described cleaning apparatus, part of a drainage path for the cleaning liquid is also used as part of a circulating path for the liquid disinfectant, and the presence of any residue of a detergent component which remains after a water rinsing step to remove the liquid detergent used may cause the liquid disinfectant to foam during the subsequent disinfecting step. The amount of foam produced increases as the circulation of the liquid disinfectant is repeated until it eventually floods over the tank of liquid detergent or impedes the channel for the liquid disinfectant, which is a major disadvantage of the apparatus described.